I think the article is not doing a good job quoting the person who said that. You can more here and most of what she says is actually in appreciation of the work itself.

> It might well be argued that if the 20 volumes of the Aubrey-Maturin cycle were to be telescoped into one book, it really would rival War and Peace as a supremely grand historical novel. O'Brian's attention to detail is astonishing, his invention never flags, his characters are rounded, his plots are compelling and he is often wonderfully merry. His saga ranges the world through many years of history, and his prose can be beautiful.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2000/sep/03/biography